Mother knows best. Mother Nature.
After days of cold, dreary, rainy weather, the thick curtain of clouds parted over Ocean City on Sunday morning, just in time for Mother’s Day. The wind was working overtime, but so were family get-togethers, meals out at local restaurants, and spins on “Mom rides free” amusements on the packed Boardwalk.
“It’s a great Mother’s Day!” said a young woman standing next to a man with a stroller occupied by a sleeping toddler. When asked for her identity she said “My name? Are you kidding? My name is Mom!”
It was that kind of day. By 10 a.m. Asbury Ave breakfast spots Arlene’s Jon and Patty’s and Yianni’s all had lines but nobody seemed to mind.
Later on, Barb Adams, a five-time mom from the Gardens section, was spotted heading to the Szechwan Garden restaurant at Ninth and Central Ave. She had just returned from a long weekend trip to Lancaster, Pa., with her husband Dean.
“Normally we would go to Greate Bay Country Club for dinner on Mother’s Day,” she said. “But this year, we weren’t sure when we would get back from our trip, and I wanted Chinese food, so here we are,” she said with a laugh. “We had a great time in Lancaster but we’re really happy to be back home.”
As the day wore on, the weather continued to shine and even more families were out in force, letting Mom know how much she is appreciated.
Pamela Owen, a Mom of two, was visiting Ocean City this weekend quite a distance from her home in Missoula, Montana.
“It’s beautiful here,” the Newark, Delaware native said, comparing our beaches favorably to Big Sky Country. She was hanging with her niece, Jessica Zaccardi of Ocean City, also a mom of two. The pair was walking Jessica’s dachshund Winnie and winding down from their big day.
“We took advantage of the Mom’s ride free rides and enjoyed the weather and just being in Ocean City,” Owen said.
On the Boardwalk, Kelly Eisler of Sicklerville, Camden County, pushed a stroller carrying son Ethan, 16 months, with big sister Hailey, 5, in tow. She was with her sister Kerry Becker and their mom Janis Meekins, of Egg Harbor City.
Like Zaccardi and Owen, Kelly and Kerry jumped on a few of the free rides to celebrate the day. Unfortunately Kelly said she wasn’t ready for the intensity of the Flying Saucer ride. “That one was the worst,” she said with a laugh, but said she was recovered enough to look forward to a nice dinner.
“We will probably head to a diner,” she said. “It was a really great day all around.”
Gina Casey, a real estate professional at Berkshire Hathaway Home Services at the Gardens Plaza. She returned from a celebratory at dinner at Marco Polo at 6th and Asbury with son Michael, 11. Casey’s daughter Kaylin works there as a waitress. “We decided to head over there and harass her a little bit,” she said. “I get asked where to eat in town all the time and I wanted to try the food there,” she said. “I had the mahi mahi. It was phenomenal!”
Candice Kolins of the Gardens was celebrating her first Mother’s Day as an expectant mom with husband Sean and her parents Dan and Adele Carlin. Candice is approaching the halfway point of her pregnancy. The foursome enjoyed a Mother’s Day meal at Touch of Italy in Egg Harbor Twp.
Her Mother’s Day present?
“I’m starting to feel some flutters from my daughter,” she said.
